Is there anything either positive or negative in the film’s representation of women not already accounted for here? (points will vary)

The woman whose role could easily have been played by a man? She’s a professional killer (played by Adrianne Palicki) who gets into a scrap with Keanu Reeves, and in their big fight scene, he gives her no quarter, and she demands none, neither explicitly nor implicitly. Nor does the film treat her as if she cannot hold her own physically against a man, or leave us with any hint that she isn’t an even match for him… and she might even be his better.

NOTE: This is not a “review” of John Wick! It is simply an examination of how well or how poorly it represents women. (A movie that represents women well can still be a terrible film; a movie that represents women poorly can still be a great film.) Read my review of John Wick.